All members of the El Paso County Colorado School District 49 Board of Education were present for a video conference of the regular May meeting.Board updateKevin Butcher, vice president, apologized to the high school seniors who had to miss many of the traditional graduation activities because of the coronavirus; he wished them good luck in their future.Dave Cruson, treasurer, thanked district staff and community members for the recent support they have provided to D 49, and said he is working with employees in the business department to lessen the impact of any necessary changes that must be made. ìThat is my commitment to you all as a staff and commitment to our community that we will be as responsible and as transparent, but also know that we are going to do the best that we can,î he said.Rick Van Wieren, secretary, said he attended the District Accountability Advisory Committeeís meeting and commended members who spend their evenings on D 49 business.John Graham, president, said they are trying to determine what will happen during the summer and fall. He congratulated all D 49 students for completing a difficult second semester of the school year.Chief officersí updatePeter Hilts, chief education officer, recognized the students who have participated in the student board of representatives, especially the few who graduated in 2020. ìWe have had really great attendance at both our student board meetings and at our board of education district meetings,î he said.Hilts said the district is putting together plans for graduation ceremonies, tentatively set for June 25, 26 and 27 for the three traditional high schools: Falcon, Sand Creek and Vista Ridge.Brett Ridgway, chief business officer, thanked the payroll employees for taking care of the district staff so the district staff could take care of the students. ìEveryone needs to know that next yearís budget will be significantly different,î he said. ìThe leadership teams are already working, making decisions carefully as they plan for next year.îPedro Almeida, chief operations officer, said the ìsafer at homeî strategy announced by Gov. Jared Polis on April 27 has allowed the district to loosen some of their restrictions with building partners, vendors and contractors to continue projects inside schools from the 3B mill levy override project list.ìFinding the right balance and making sure that we are getting our mission done and balancing that with health concerns and safeguarding our students, our staff, our families and our community, and hitting the right balance is what we are focused on,î Almeida said.Student board of representativesí updateJordan Reynolds, an 11th-grade student from FHS, thanked everyone for their support and making the transition to e-learning as easy as possible.Action itemsThe BOE unanimously approved the following:
- The charter contract for the Pioneer Technology and Arts Academy
- Dissolution of the charter contract with the Automotive Institute of Science and Technology because facility and enrollment conditions have not been met
- Updates to the job description for the senior systems administrator, student information systems
- The Accuplacer Preparatory course at VRHS to help juniors and seniors reach their postsecondary goals and provide the opportunity to demonstrate mastery in math and English through Next Generation Accuplacer scores
- Addition of courses at VRHS: English lab tutor; math lab tutor; SAT English Preparatory; work study; and WorkKeys
- Student fees for the 2020-2021 school year
- Nutrition services charter school meal contracts for the 2020-2021 school year
- Pay schedules for the 2020-2021 school year
- Chief officersí goals for the 2020-2021 school year
- Revisions to the policy regarding school wellness
